New York votes to legalize daily fantasy sports

Daily fantasy sports is set to be back in business in New York.

Jesse McKinley and Joe Drape of The New York Times reports DFS companies won a legislative victory on Saturday which will allow the state to legalize online betting sites. The victory comes with a handful of new guidelines for operations. The Times reports the new deal will force DFS companies to reveal top players as such, so casual players aren’t taken advantage of. DFS companies will also pay New York 15.5 percent of their operation revenue. The Times reports the new bill still needs to be signed.

“Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, a Democrat, has not yet indicated that he will sign the bill, but the final legislation included proposed modifications from his staff, suggesting at least some degree of support.”

New York has had a long battle with DFS companies over the legality of their services. DraftKings and FanDuel both agreed to stop taking bets in the state back in March.

According to the Times, New York attorney general Eric T. Schneiderman, who pioneered the battle against the companies, said he will still enforce and defend the law but will still continue to go after FanDuel and DraftKings over fraud and false advertising claims.

So, while it’s not a complete victory for DFS companies as they’ll still be under the scrutiny of Schneiderman, it’s a big win as the new bill will allow the companies to operate again in New York.